Although the employer’s liability for work injuries is constructed very strictly in the Labour Code, it is not entirely boundless.
When is the employer relieved of liability in full?
The employer does not have to pay anything if it proves that the harm was caused exclusively by:
- a culpable breach of safety rules or instructions by the employee, even though the employee had been properly informed of those rules and knowledge and observance of them were required and checked.
Example: the employee was supposed to use a crane to lift a load. Manual handling was prohibited and the employee had been properly instructed about it. Although the crane was available, the employee decided to lift the load by hand. Their back gave way as they lifted it.
- drunkenness or abuse of addictive substances by the employee, where the employer could not have prevented the harm.
Example: the employee comes to work under the influence of alcohol and falls down the stairs solely as a result of being drunk.
When is the employer relieved of liability in part?
The employer is relieved of liability in part, that is, it compensates only a certain share of the harm, if it proves that the harm arose partly from:
- a culpable breach of safety rules or instructions by the employee, even though the employee had been properly informed of those rules and knowledge and observance of them were required and checked.
Example: an employee entered a prohibited area containing dangerous substances and was burned by them. The area, however, was not adequately secured against entry by unauthorised persons.
- drunkenness or abuse of addictive substances by the employee, where the employer could not have prevented the harm.
Unlike full relief, these are situations where the injury arose from several circumstances and only some of them can be laid at the employee’s door.
The employer is also relieved of liability in part if it proves that the harm arose from
- recklessness on the part of the employee — in short, a case where the employee, although breaching no rule, knowingly took a risk and disregarded their own safety even though they must have known they could get hurt.
Example: instead of using the stairs, the employee slides down the banister on the 8th floor and falls through to the floors below.
Other cases in which the employer is not liable for the harm
The employer is not liable for an injury the employee inflicted on themselves deliberately. Such an injury is not a work injury at all.
Example: a worker deliberately injures themselves in order to avoid work or to obtain compensation.
What does that mean in practice?
The burden of proof lies with the employer. It has to prove that grounds for liberation arose. Where the employee’s fault is not clear-cut, the employer bears the liability.
Where the liberation is partial, the employer still has to compensate part of the harm.
Why is liberation a frequent source of disputes?
In practice employers often claim that the employee acted recklessly or breached safety rules, in order to escape their liability.
Not every careless act by an employee can be treated as recklessness, though. And not every breach of health and safety obligations automatically relieves the employer.
Assessing the circumstances correctly has a decisive influence on whether the employee receives compensation in full.
